“The Ultimate Fighter 2″ winner danced around former light-heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell (21-6 MMA, 16-5 UFC) for the entire first round. In the second frame Liddell began to close the distance, but it was Evans who would take advantage of the close range.

Evans loaded up on a devastating right hand, and Liddell was dropped cold to the canvas. The once seemingly unbeatable “Iceman” suffered his third defeat in his previous four bouts.

The result ruined an all-but-scheduled December title bout between current champion Forrest Griffin and Liddell. As for Evans, the sometimes-lightly-regarded 27-year-old laid his claim to upper-level status in the UFC’s deep 205-pound division.

“Chuck is a great, great competitor,” Evans said after the bout. “I’m just really happy right now.”

Evans was unconcerned with his ranking, and he simply wanted to enjoy the moment.

In a match-up of friends and former training partners, Rich Franklin (24-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) made a triumphant return to the light-heavyweight division with a third-round TKO of “The Ultimate Fighter 3″ competitor Matt Hamill (4-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC).

Franklin kept his distance throughout the bout, peppering Hamill with kicks to the legs and body. Hamill tried to shoot in on multiple occasions, but Franklin’s balance and defensive wrestling prevented the fight from going to the floor. Franklin controlled the opening two rounds, and a heavy kick to the ribs dropped Hamill early in the third round.

Hamill covered up on the mat, and the bout was halted just 39 seconds into the final round.

After the bout, Franklin — who has tried twice and failed to topple middleweight champion Anderson Silva — announced he will be continuing to compete in the UFC’s talent-rich light-heavyweight division.

Henderson fought intelligently, though perhaps not overwhelmingly entertaining, throughout the 15-minute contest. Henderson refused to test the ground skills of submission-expert Palhares. Multiple attempts by Palhares to work from the floor were easily brushed aside by the Team Quest star. Afterwards, Henderson said the fight went exactly as he had planned.

“I wanted to keep the fight on the feet,” Henderson said. “I didn’t want to mess around with [Palhares] on the ground. Nobody knows who he is, but he is damn dangerous. But I knew I could control and keep it on the feet.”

In what was considered by most a No. 1 contender bout in the middleweight division, Nate Marquardt (27-8-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) simply overwhelmed Martin Kampmann (13-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC).

Marquardt landed a high kick as the first significant strike of the fight, and Kampmann never recovered. Marquardt kept the pressure on the Danish striker, and the barrage of punches crumpled Kampmann against the cage. The stoppage followed at just 82 seconds into the bout.

The win may well have earned Marquardt a second shot at UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. The bout was Kampmann’s first loss in the octagon.

After clearly losing the first round, Brown appeared to control the action through the remaining 10 minutes. Pursuing Kim with strikes from every angle, and controlling the majority of the action on the mat, the crowd in attendance believed Brown had done enough for the upset. Only one judge agreed, however, and Kim earned the split decision.

Brown was disappointed, but remained respectful.

“I don’t fight for judges,” Brown said. “I fight for fans and finishes. I fight because I love fighting.”

Kim was apologetic for the result.

“I am sorry to UFC fans for the fight going to a decision,” Kim said. “I hate decisions. Next time I (will) finish.”

After a dominate first round by Pellegrino, Tavares battled back in the second. Tavares controlled enough of the action in the second frame to earn the round. A replay showed the Brazilian may have tapped to a tight armbar from Pellegrino, but the action continued.

The action in the third round slowed, but Pellegrino’s wrestling earned him the nod. Pellegrino now sports a 2-2 record in his last four fights in the octagon, while the loss is Tavares’ second straight.

Last-minute replacement and UFC newcomer Mike Patt (12-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) received a rude welcome to the organization in the form of hard-hitting Tim Boetsch (8-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC).

Patt survived the initial onslaught by Boetsch. But a mistimed and soft leg kick by Patt led to a hard right-hand counter by Boetsch. Patt was wobbled, and Boetsch wasted little time in sealing the deal.

After surviving a guillotine choke early in the first round, MacDonald was able to control the remainder of the action in the opening frame. MacDonald landed several elbows while working a solid ground and pound as time expired.

In the second, MacDonald wasted little time in hip-tossing Lambert to the mat. Once there, MacDonald moved quickly to mount, then to Lambert’s back. A rear-naked choke followed, and Lambert was forced to tap.

Despite the change in weight class, Lambert has now dropped three-straight bouts in the UFC. “The Punisher” was last victorious in the octagon at UFC 68 in March 2007.

The win for MacDonald helps to erase the sting of an admittedly disappointing loss to Damian Maia at last month’s UFC 87.

In the opening bout of the evening PRIDE, DEEP and Pancrase veteran Ryo Chonan (15-8 MMA, 1-1 UFC) was able to edge out American Top Team fighter Roan Carneiro (12-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC). In a sometimes slow-paced fight that caused spells of unrest amongst the early-gathered crowd, the first two rounds left the fighters even.

The final frame was razor-thin, but two of the three judges at ringside felt Chonan had done just enough to earn the win.

The win was Chonan’s first in the UFC after dropping a decision to Karo Parisyan in November 2007. Carneiro has now dropped two straight in the octagon.

UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey is probably the greatest female fighter on the planet, which is a tremendous feat. So why are we seemingly so obsessed with arguing about whether she could beat up men?